At the request of the police, a store in Tokyo that sells secondhand manga and anime collectibles has dropped its plan to post a photo of a suspected shoplifter, the store's owner, Mandarake Inc., said Wednesday.
After posting security camera footage of the alleged shoplifter with a digitally blurred face, Mandarake had threatened to publish an unaltered photo of the man unless the stolen item, a tin toy robot from the classic anime series "Tetsujin 28-go" with a price tag of ¥250,000, was returned by Tuesday.
The police urged Mandarake not to post the photo, citing concern that it could hinder its investigation, a source said. The item was taken from a showcase at one of the company's stores in Nakano Ward on Aug. 4, according to Mandarake.